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Images have surfaced of what a Chinese parts distributor claims is a fourth-generation iPhone midboard. If you're thinking "Why would Apple do business with anyone who openly leaks such sensitive info?" you're not alone. As a result, many are reluctant to believe what they are seeing.

From [ame="http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=813840"]MacRumors.com[/ame]:

Gizmodo reports that Chinese parts supplier China Ontrade is offering an "Apple iPhone 4 Generation Midboard", which the company claims it received from Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn on November 1st. The site also claims that it will be posting pictures of the back cover of the next-generation iPhone in the near future.

Although the response to the allegedly authentic fourth generation midboard has been met with wide excitement, that reality is obviously born primarily of the natural excitement that would accompany the arrival of a 4G phone. But a lot of folks (myself included) have hoped for a sturdier, more durable case for the iPhone. If this turns out to be a relatively flimsy piece of plastic, the 4G could be even more delicate than the current offering, which has long been derided for the same problem.

Assuming the pics are legit, we'll know more in the very near future about about the next generation iPhone.
The Chinese parts maker has promised a slate of new photos of the iPhone 4G and its "amazingly beautiful back cover."

The same company last week posted what it claims to be a SIM card tray from the fourth-generation iPhone, although the site also referred to the device as an "iTablet", suggesting that the tray could be from Apple's much-rumored tablet project rather than the iPhone.

Many will certainly dissect these images and reports in great detail over the coming days. But, as our friends at MacRumors similarly concluded, this report out of China should be taken with a grain of salt. In the past, dubious reports about subsequent generations of the iPhone have proven blatantly fabricated or, at the very least, seriously exaggerated.

Consequently, it remains to be seen whether this latest part is in fact from a next-generation iPhone, which would be a significant surprise this early before an expected launch next summer, or if it is from some other device.